Ben 10: Continuity Break
by Goddamned Ninja
Summary: Ben Tennyson's adventure continues the summer after, with allies and enemies both old and new. Though a dark force threatens to destroy him and his friends, they can soldier through with the tutoring of a lunatic in a trench coat.
1. The Second Summer Part 1

**Me: This story has roots in my main story, Assassin X. In fact, this is literally the 61st chapter. I'm not going to update this story often, but chapters will show up in pairs. If you're going to read, I would very much like reviews. In fact, you can also submit ideas for aliens!**

**A warning: This story will include swearing and blood and death.**

**The first portion of the story takes up from where John, from Assassin X, is struggling with a Time-Space Manipulation Device...**

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><p>Chapter 1 – The Second Summer<p>

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><p>John trudged sullenly through the desert, leaving a trail of footprints dotting the dunes behind him. Grumbling, he wiped the sweat from his forehead and glared at the featureless sky above him, looking almost like one giant sun. "I hate this place… with a passion…" he growled, sliding down the next dune. "WHERE AM I, DAMNIT! ?"<p>

"An artificially generated pocket of time-space, separate from the rest of reality," he responded calmly.

This caused him pause. "Wow… I've totally cracked now…" he muttered, looking around in confusion.

"The overabundance of time-space energy is providing X Armor System with sufficient power to operate voice circuits," his back said.

He opened and closed his mouth like a fish, trying to come up with an intelligent question. Giving up, he instead went back to wandering aimlessly across the completely empty wasteland, muttering curses towards X and all related to him. An hour of aimless wandering and listening to the Armor System relay all its functions and various armors, which he listened to none of, he arrived at the end of the desert. It was also the end of everything else.

"What the crap?" he said out loud, taking out a knife and tossing it into the empty void in front of him. It promptly disintegrated.

"Wearer has arrived at the end of the time-space pocket. Warning: do not proceed further due to excess time-space energies making matter-based objects age to nothing," the Armor System chirped in his voice.

"Can't you use a different voice or somethin'?" John asked grumpily, looking over his shoulder at his back.

"Negative. No other voice files available," it said and then, a second later, "Warning: Time-space pocket collapsing. Suggested action: immediate removal."

"Oh, _well_," John muttered, lifting his shirt to fiddle with the dial on his belt. "Fuck my life." He disappeared in a flash of light just as the boundary of the pocket started to collapse in on itself. Moments later, the entire time-space pocket imploded, sending a ripple out through time.

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><p>While John might have escaped with only a mild case of heatstroke, the rest of time was not so lucky. The collapse of the time-space pocket generated by the Time Belt caused a ripple through reality; in each timeline it hit, a small, insignificant change occurred. In one, a tree grew an extra leaf. In another, a perfectly normal child was born with a blue stripe running down the middle of her hair. In yet another, an atom of a rock was positioned a fraction to the left.<p>

But, in one, the change was just enough to change the course of a young girl's life. In this timeline, a tree wound up with just a slight crack due to one atom being mispositioned.

This tree wound up being cut down and built into a house; specifically, a bookcase. And, on that shelf, a large book was placed, slowly warping the wood beneath it. One day, the shelf collapsed, depositing its load to the floor twenty feet below.

Now, this, by itself, wouldn't change much. But, in a few timelines, a young girl was in the room. In some, she was nowhere near the bookshelf. But in others, she was directly below it. Sometimes, she would be just off and only be surprised by the impact. Sometimes, she would be mildly concussed as the book deflected off her head. Sometimes, she would be struck on the head so hard as to turn her into a mindless slave, a pawn of her uncle.

But, in one… The book fell seventeen feet until it struck the silver-haired girl on the side of her head, ricocheting off to the side and knocking her to the floor. "Ow!" the young Charmcaster cried, clutching at her head in pain.

"Charmcaster!" her uncle roared as he stormed into the room, glaring at her. "Haven't I ordered you to stay out of my study! ?"

"Oh, stick it up your ass!"

"WHAT DID YOU SAY! ?"

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><p>- - Eleven Years Later - -<p>

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><p>The bell rang, followed by a cheer from the assembled students. As they stood and filed haphazardly from the room, their teacher sighed with relief. "Summer school, yadda yadda, see you, blah blah…" she muttered, massaging her temples.<p>

"Yeah, right! See you next year!" the eleven-year-old Ben Tennyson shouted as he ran past. Punching a fist into the air, he added, "Summer vacation time!" and ran from the room.

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><p>Ben ran across the school yard towards the RV parked at the side of the road, waving an arm in greeting. "Hey, grandpa!" he shouted as he leapt in, throwing his bag to the side. "Hey, dweeb!" The previous summer, during the group's trip around the country, Ben had come into possession of a powerful alien device called the Omnitrix, which allowed him to transform into various forms. He used it to protect and aid people as they traveled, becoming a well-known hero.<p>

"How've you been, doofus?" his orange-haired cousin responded, waving an idle hand at him and glancing up from the small book she was reading. The now-eleven-year-old Gwen had been forced to come on the trip by her parents last summer, but had quickly come to enjoy it. Though initially she and her cousin disliked each other, they grew closer as friends. While Ben had obtained the Omnitrix, she had come into possession of a book of magic.

"Glad to see there's been no love lost between you two," their grandfather said, walking back from the driver's seat. Max Tennyson was an ex-Plumber, a secret government agency designed to protect the world from alien threats. He had since retired to live an average life with his family.

The two glanced at each and looked back to their grandfather with a grin. "Nah!" they said cheerfully. He laughed and turned back, leaping into his seat.

Ben leaped into the passenger seat, quickly strapping in. "So… where we goin' grampa?" he asked.

"'Que diriez-vous de Paris, mon petit-fils?'" Max responded, pulling out into the street.

Ben looked at him blankly. "What."

"Paris? We're going to _Paris_?" Gwen spoke up from behind her cousin. Max grinned, turning off onto the highway.

"Really? How're we going to do _that_?" Ben asked wonderingly.

"Well, I _did_ stop by Cooper's place a couple of times over the school year…" the elderly man admitted, turning towards the east. He reached out and pressed a button on the dash, causing bits of the rear of the RV to fold out, forming stabilizing fins and kinetic jets.

"_Oh_~~~, ho _ho_~~!" Ben laughed, gripping the arms of his seat tightly. Likewise, Gwen steadied herself in her seat, an apprehensive grimace crossing her face. "This is gonna be _good_!" The engines whined as they powered up the jets and then, in a moment, the RV hit Mach 3 and disappeared over the horizon.

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><p>- - Paris, France - -<p>

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><p>The now-sixteen-year-old Charmcaster reclined in her seat, sighing heavily as she rustled her paper grumpily. She was seated outside a café, waiting for her order of coffee and a croissant. Turning the page, she encountered something that made her scowl darkly, gripping the paper angrily. Displayed prominently at the center of the page, was an image of a tall creature. It was humanoid in shape and seemed to be made of crystal. But Ben's alien form, Diamondhead, wasn't the source of her ire. In front of him was an orange-haired girl in a black catsuit and a feline mask hiding the upper half of her face.<p>

"_Gwen_…" the young witch snarled, acting as if the word was a curse of the highest caliber. Folding the paper fiercely and slamming it down on the table, she sat back in her seat with a curse, pulling her purple coat around her tightly. "Damnit! I move to Europe to get away from you and what happens? _You follow me_… Fuck. my. life…"

"Um… miss?" a nervous waiter asked, hesitantly hovering around her shoulder.

"What! ?" she snapped, glaring at him.

Visibly startled, he stammered out, "He-here's your… your coffee, m-miss!" He quickly set the saucer and the cup upon it on the table before backing away.

"Oh! Why, thank you!" Charmcaster said, suddenly all smiles. "How much do I owe you?" she asked, digging into her bag.

"Oh, no charge, no charge!" he said quickly, waving her down.

"No, my employers insist," she said with a wry smile, pulling her wallet out. "Keep the change," she told him, handing him a ten Euro bill.

"Thank you, thank you!" he stammered, backing away as the assembled customers let out a collective sigh of relief.

"Yeah, yeah… whatever…" she muttered, waving him away. She sighed again, resting her chin on her hand. "What I would give to have things go my way for once…" she said despondently to herself, stirring cream into her coffee. Setting the spoon to the side, she lifted the cup to her lips.

Halfway, it was blasted from her hand, causing her to leap back with a snarl of rage and pain. Charmcaster spun on her heel, searching for the source of the beam. And a quartet of armored women fell from the sky.

"Rojo…" the witch snarled, her hand straying towards her bag.

"Hey, _princess_. How've _you_ been lately? _I've_ been on the run ever since you _backstabbed us at Mount Rushmore_!" the lead woman said, her words laced with venom. She aimed the cannon on her arm at her former associate. "And don't even _think_ about trying any fancy tricks!"

Charmcaster let her arm drop, not wanting to risk a shot from the alien tech Rojo's gang was packing. "Yeah? Well, you deserved it, you fool, and I'd do worse to you given the chance!" she growled, moving away from the café. "_And don't call me princess…_"

Rojo gaped dumbly for a few seconds, taken aback by her retort, before gritting her teeth angrily. "Get her!" she shouted, pointing at her adversary. Her gang, decked out in similar tech, rushed forwards, aiming at her. Two managed to fire, sending her rolling off to the side.

The third was hit in the head with a green blob of energy, which subsequently exploded, throwing her across the street. "Ha ha! Let's see how you like that!" the squat, green Upchuck laughed in a gruff voice, landing acrobatically on the railing of the café that had been quickly vacated.

"_Tennyson_!" Rojo snarled, turning to the alien. "Forget the _freak_, let's get _him_! He's the one responsible for my problems, anyways!" She rushed forwards, slashing at him with the claws on her right hand, blasting away as he leapt over her head to escape.

He wound up rolling clumsily as he landed, managing to scoop up chunks of masonry that Rojo had blasted off the building as he did. "_My_ fault? How am _I_ responsible for _your_ mistakes?" he shouted as his four tongues pulled the rocks into his mouth.

"Yeah… I should have killed you when I had the chance!" she shouted, flinging a disk towards him. Ben dove to the side, firing a blast of energy as he did. It clipped her, spinning her in place. It didn't stop her from shouting, "Missy! Get 'im!"

"Gotcha!" one of the girls cried as Ben rolled directly in front of her, aiming her cannon at the back of his head. She fired, the alien managing to rotate just enough to avoid a direct hit. He quickly returned the attack, shooting at where her head was. Pinky had, however, been blown away as four egg-shaped rocks smashed into her side and exploded, sending her skidding down the street.

"I _thought_ I knew that _stench_!" Charmcaster spat over the crash of the masonry Upchuck's blast had separated from its building. She dug back into her bag, returning with numerous rings. "I'm _still_ pissed from what you did to me, _Pinky_!" she added, hurling the rings at the third of Rojo's group.

"And why was that! ? Because you had the nerve to double-cross me!" she shouted, punching through the rings. "And you're going to get what you deserve," she added ominously, raising her hands over her head. The alien tech whirred into life, forming a large orb of energy, ten feet across between her hands.

Charmcaster gasped in panic. "Are you insane! ? That'll blow up half the street!" she shouted, stepping back slightly.

Pinky grinned. "Don't. care," she said and, with a shout of triumph, hurled her attack at the teen in front of her.

It stopped halfway and was sucked into the device Max was holding, cutting off the woman's gloating. "We can't be having _that_, now, can we?" he muttered, flicking it around and aiming it at her. A simple press of a button shot a beam out of the prongs at the end, sending her spinning end over end.

Charmcaster watched as the elderly man ran forward, firing at any of the gang that got too close. She watched as Upchuck ran around nimbly, his stubby legs flying as he ate anything that came to hand and firing the resulting plasma at Rojo. _'Since they're focusing on those four and ignoring _me_, that'd mean… _Gwen's_ here…_' she thought to herself, waiting patiently for any sign her arch-enemy was there.

She didn't have to wait long. "Hey, Charmcaster!" the girl called, dressed up in her costume as she landed lightly on a mailbox behind the witch, the blue glow of her magic fading. "Don't suppose you'd consider surrendering right now, hunh?"

"Oh… you _really_ think you're a match for me?" Charmcaster replied, turning slightly to glare at the red-head. "Don't you think you're being a _little_ cocky?"

"I don't see why I shouldn't be, considering how our last confrontation ended," Gwen responded with a smirk. "And I'm even better, now! You just don't have what it takes."

"… And that's why… I'm willing to throw away everything I've earned as long as I can put you in your place, _princess_!" she spat, turning to face her fully. "EXUSTIO!" she roared, pointing directly at her foe's head. Charmcaster grinned in satisfaction as she watched the girl roll desperately away from the lance of fire.

"Shinnyu Invisibus!" Gwen shouted as she came to a stop, hurling the rubble from the other fight at the witch's head.

"Really? Amateurish," she said with a sigh, leaping up and over the rocks with ease. "You only had a chance against me because of the Keystone draining my magic for a while and the stupidity of my cohorts! Eterla Morbulous!" She slapped her hand to the ground and her aura flashed out towards her opponent, the street shattering as it passed. When the dust cleared, her eyes narrowed in annoyance.

Gwen had disappeared.

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><p>The red-head leaned heavily against the pillar, favoring her left leg and not letting it touch the ground. She gritted her teeth and glanced down, wincing at the blood dripping onto the floor. "She wasn't kidding… She is ridiculously strong…"<p>

"Come out, come out, little _princess_!" Charmcaster called as she entered the floor Gwen was hiding on, startling her.

Under the cover of the dust cloud, she had ducked away, escaping into the shadows of a decrepit building. On one of the higher floors, she had stopped to hide behind a pillar, tired from blood-loss.

"You're a fool to think you can hide from me, sweety!" the witch sang and, with a quick wave of her hand, a purple dust blew out a pillar and a portion of the wall, startling the people in the street below.

'_As averse I am to think this, I can't hope to beat her head on… I'll need to place my hopes on a delayed spell…'_ Gwen thought to herself, crouching as another pillar was blown away. She clenched a hand tightly, closing her eyes as she focused.

Charmcaster blew out another pillar, leaving the one her adversary was hiding behind as the last in the room. "This is the end, princess!" she snarled, waving a hand. "Omnis Eradico!" A bright flash of light erupted from her body and, when it faded, a perfectly circular hole in the wall was all that was left. The witch smirked slightly… then flinched when a drop of blood landed on her face.

Gwen dropped out of the rafters just as she looked up in surprise, shouting, "Mercuchus Veridaitus!"

"Interdamotor Elaborator!" Charmcaster retaliated, the red blast of heat colliding with the blue blast. Clenching their teeth in effort, the collision of energy was slowing Gwen's fall towards the witch. Pink eyes met green as the red-head landed lightly on the floor, the pair's hands inches apart, separated only by the clash of red and blue.

And then, to Charmcaster's surprise, Gwen grinned and forced her left hand past their struggling magics. _'Delayed magic! ?' _the witch thought in horror, watching as the glow spread from being a small orb to a blue aura over her rival's hand.

The sides of the room were blown out violently, the support columns barely surviving…

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><p>Gwen lurched to her feet, gritting her teeth in pain as she stumbled through the rubble that had nearly crushed her. Her left arm was clenched to her chest and she had deep cuts all across her body. Her mask had disappeared somewhere in the rubble.<p>

Eventually, she found Charmcaster. And, what she saw caused her to come to a stop in shock. As she stared, the witch opened her eyes and growled as Gwen came into blurred vision.

"Ch… Charmcaster…" she stuttered, stepping back.

"'m not… done ye… yet…" the silver-haired girl mumbled, trying to stand from where she was laying on the rubble. And she slipped on the hem of her pants and her coat became entangled around her arm. She looked down in horror at her body, now far too small for the clothes on her body.

"You're… young…" Gwen said, staring in shock at the witch.

"What… have you done to me! ?" she snarled, grabbing the red-head by the front of her costume and lurching forward menacingly. But she wound up gasping in pain and passing out as, with a sickening squelch, the rebar embedded in her back pulled free.

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><p><strong>So, I'm not fond of how Ben 10: Ultimate Alien Force has panned out. In fact, I've discovered that the sequels <em>aren't<em> written by Man of Action, the creators of the original series. They are literally glorified FanFiction!**

**I don't like the massive retcons dealt to the original series, like Kai from "Benwolf" being written out of existence and the Plumbers going from a defunct Earth defense organization to an intergalactic police force.**

**I don't like the massive character derailment, such as Vilgax going from the amoral MASTER OF THE OMNITRIX to the honor-bound retard, Kevin going from the insane, sociopathic mutant who had to think past his weakened powers to a bad-boy wannabe who punches things, Azmuth going from the apathetic hermit to the leader of the Galvan, ten-year-old Ben acting more immature than he ever did in the original series, Gwen immediately throwing herself into Kevin's arms in the _first episode_ even though they had about _two lines together_ beforehand...**

**I honestly believe Ultimate Alien Force is a completely separate continuity from the original series.**

**I have a DeviantArt account by the name of Assassin-VariableX which has numerous pictures I've created, one of which being for this story. Warning: Spoilers.**


	2. The Second Summer Part 2

**Me: Good morrow, everyone! When I saw the name of the last episode, "The Flame Keeper's Circle", I was really hoping for the return of Charmcaster. Sadly, we wind up with squid!Vilgax again, amazingly looking even more pathetic than ever before in these sequels. Just so sad. It also continues the trend of Ben being an incompetent idiot and not using an alien other than fuckin' (Ultimate) Big Chill in his apparent repertoire of _sixty-three_. What I was also hoping for was the return of the Mummy, but _no~~_, we get Big Chill and Echo Echo.**

**Again.**

**Balls.**

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><p>Chapter 2 – The Second Summer (Part Two)<p>

Charmcaster woke with a start, wincing at the pain in her stomach. She stared blearily up at the ceiling, blinking in confusion. After a moment, her eyes snapped wide and she jerked upright. "_Gwen_…" she snarled, slipping off the bed to the floor.

"So… you're up…" She froze, slowly looking up towards the brown-haired boy leaning against a door in front of her. Quickly taking in their surroundings, she recognized the inside of the Tennyson's RV.

"Where am I?" she asked Ben, eying the watch on his wrist apprehensively.

"In the Rustbucket," he replied curtly, standing up. "I'm not sure why Gwen insisted we hide you but here we are…" He let out a sigh and his hand drifted towards the Omnitrix.

"Kimo Chaa!" Charmcaster shouted, pointing at Ben. In a flash of green light, the young boy's body was replaced with a hulking form with a white belly and a black back and shoulders laced with green lines. They waited.

"Um…" Upgrade said, Ben's voice sounding like it was being run through a synthesizer. "Was that it?"

"What…? Why can't I use magic?" she asked wonderingly, staring at her hand in horror. Her eyes flashed around the room quickly.

"And I've locked away your bag, in case you're wondering," Upgrade said, noticing the look on her face. He turned and walked towards the door. "Now if you'll excuse me…" he added, exiting the vehicle.

As soon as the door closed, the witch went to work. She quickly searched through any drawer that came to hand, wincing as each movement sent shocks of pain rippling through her body.

"… Charmcaster?" The now-eleven-year-old girl spun on her heel, glaring at the red-head that had just entered the RV. Gwen stepped forward hesitantly.

"What did you do to my magic?" she asked, her demeanor deceptively calm.

"What? I didn't do anyth-"

"DON'T LIE TO ME! !" Charmcaster screamed, lurching forward and grabbing the girl by the front of her shirt. She pulled them together and hissed, "Why are you helping me?"

"You seemed sad!" Gwen blurted out, trying to break the witch's grip. "Like you were… desperate…"

Charmcaster's face contorted in rage. "WHY SHOULD YOU CARE! ?" she screamed, hurling the red-head to the floor. She leapt over the prone girl and stormed from the RV, slamming the door in Gwen's shocked face.

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><p>The slam got the attention of the other two Tennysons, turning their gazes from the fire lighting the night to the enraged magic-user. "Hey! Where are you goin'! ?" Upgrade shouted, stepping towards her.<p>

"_Get away from me, freak_!" she screamed, violently waving an arm to ward him off.

"_What_ did you say?" the blob-like alien growled, stepping forward.

"Let her go," Max said, grabbing him by the arm.

"But-!" He stopped, noting the expression on his grandfather's face. He sighed and turned back to watch Charmcaster disappear into the woods. Gwen rushed out just in time to see her leave, swallowed by the darkness.

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><p>"Ben! Gwen! Dinnertime!" Max called, setting the plates loaded with strange, slightly moving beans onto the picnic table. He turned and went to the grill, flipping the patties over. He turned again when he heard the clatter of plates as Ben sat on the bench.<p>

"What in the world?" he exclaimed in horror, peering at the wriggling beans before him.

"Grubs and snails," Max said cheerfully, ignoring his grandson's gagging motion. "High in protein. Where's Gwen?"

"I dunno. Probably off sulking somewhere," Ben said vaguely, waving his free hand while the other jabbed a grub with a fork.

Max sighed, kneading his forehead with his fingers. "Well, could you go find her for me?" he asked his grandson. "I'll keep dinner warm for the two of you."

Ben looked at him for a second before sighing and dropping the fork. With a grumpy look on his face, he twisted the dial on the Omnitrix and pressed down.

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><p>Gwen sighed, sitting on a rock at the edge of the forest. She looked at the night sky and leaned back. "Geez… You don't have to be alone all the time, you know…" she grumbled, watching as the sky shifted with the turn of the world. "Why would I think that? It's not like we really know each other!" she asked herself suddenly, facepalming grumpily. She sighed again and went back to watching the sky, which was suddenly obscured by a mass of orange fur dropping towards her.<p>

Wildmutt, a quadruped alien with orange fur and no eyes, landed heavily in front of her and stuck his face up close. Gwen flinched slightly as he breathed on her, rustling her hair. "Whaddya want, fleabait?" she asked, shoving Ben's furry face away from her. Suddenly, she found herself lifted up and onto his back. "What! ? Hey, wait!" she stammered before her words were crammed down her throat as Wildmutt took off into the forest.

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><p>Charmcaster stumbled slightly, panting slightly as she clutched her stomach in pain. She pressed on, heading deeper into the forest. "Stupid… worthless… freaky… overpowered…" she muttered darkly, stopping every once in a while to rip her oversized clothes from the clingy branches. "When I find out what she did to my magic… oooh, is she gonna get it!" She shrieked as a particularly stubborn branch wound up slinging her back down the hill through the brambles.<p>

She lay there motionless, staring up at the sky. Her eyes watered slightly before she hastily sniffed back her tears. "Oh, what the hell do you two want! ? I told you to LEAVE ME ALONE!" she shouted as two red-heads came into view above.

Wildmutt snorted indignantly and stalked off, disappearing into the shadows of the nearby trees, while Gwen dropped to her knees and reached out a hand to the prone girl. "I just want to help you, Charmcaster…" she said softly, waiting.

"I don't WANT your help! I don't NEED it!" she shouted, slapping the proffered hand away and lurching to her feet.

"Yes, you do!" Gwen retorted, standing as well. "You can't survive wit-!"

"'Can't _survive'_! ? I'm not a child anymore, _princess_! I can buy my own insurance and everything!" Charmcaster snapped, slapping a hand to her chest.

"Not like that, you can't!" Gwen shot back, waving a hand at her rival's shrunken body. "Nobody would believe you're Charmcaster! You can't even use magic!"

She gaped at the red-head, spluttering incoherently in her rage. "THIS IS _YOUR_ FAULT! !" she managed to scream, suddenly leaping forward and driving a fist into Gwen's face.

"Wha- how is this _my_ fault! ?" Gwen stammered, glaring at the trembling witch standing over her.

"Every time… _Every time_ something's goin' my way, the universe _screws_ me over! You, uncle, that giant _fuckin'_ turtle…!" Charmcaster raged, lashing out at the foliage around them, oblivious to Gwen's astonishment. "IT'S NOT _FAIR_! IT'S JUST NOT _FAIR_! WHY'S IT ALWAYS _ME_! ?... Why's it always me…?" She fell to her knees, clutching her coat tighter around her.

"Charmcaster…" Gwen mumbled, looping her arms around the girl's shoulders and pulling her close despite her feeble resistance. "Want to talk…? I'll listen."

"Why should you care…?"

"Sometimes… it's better to just get your problems off of your chest. Two people can carry more than one alone, right?" She shifted slightly so she could sit next to the girl, using her free hand to wipe her tears away. She smiled slightly as Charmcaster slapped the hand away indignantly.

They were silent for a time, Charmcaster sniffling slightly. "I come from an… alternate dimension, of sorts…" she started suddenly, startling Gwen who had been staring off into space. "My father was named Spellbinder and he… _was_ the greatest magic user in our colony. He was our leader. One day, I was born. I was kinda set apart from everybody else because my father was so amazing, the children from less powerful parents were afraid of me… They shouldn't have been, because I was separated from the children from powerful parents because I couldn't do the simplest charms… They made fun of me and laughed at me, calling me a… a _freak_! A freak of nature… I had to _work_ for everything I had, to perform the works of magic that came so _naturally_ to those _perfect_ little…" She trailed off, muttering darkly under her breath.

"Charm… Charmcaster?" Gwen said, shaking the girl slightly.

"ASSHOLES!" she shouted suddenly, shaking with rage again. She gritted her teeth and was silent until she calmed down. "… Three years passed with many sleepless nights spent studying until I surpassed them _all_." She grinned at the thought, but her expression quickly grew dark. "_That_ pride was short-lived, as, not three days later, Adwaita came, a giant turtle thing with a flaming head. No matter what we threw at him, he didn't feel a thing and just decimated my people. In order to protect me, my father threw me through the Door to Anywhere and I wound up here… but not before having the last memory of my father being his death."

"Charmcaster… I'm sorry… I'm so sorry…" Gwen said, hugging her tight again.

"It doesn't matter… not now, eleven years later… Eventually, after wandering aimlessly, I decided to start my life over here. Tried to get a job and crap, you know? Used magic so I looked like I was working age. Worked too. I got a job and managed to buy a house, though I cheated a little by using magic at work… Of course, this is when I find out my cowardly uncle snuck through the Door before it shut behind me. Found me, he did, and wrecked my life. I lost my job and he took over my house because '_magic isn't meant for trivial work!_'" she snarled, mocking her uncle's voice. "He dragged me into crime with him and, when I started getting good at _that_… _you_ popped up. Three weeks… three weeks and you had caught up with me. Do you know how that feels? Do you! ? You took the last two things I had to my name, Gwen… my already brittle pride and my magic…"

The two girls were silent again, sitting side-by-side under the stars. "We could start over…" Gwen said suddenly.

"Whazzat?" Charmcaster asked, looking at her in confusion.

"We could start over! You and I, we could relearn everything," the red-head replied, excited. "Wouldn't it be better to have someone in the same boat this time?"

"Who said there would be a 'this time'?" Charmcaster replied coldly.

"Like you'd give up," Gwen retorted, a sly grin on her face.

And, after a moment, an identical grin passed over the witch's face.

* * *

><p><strong>God, Charmcaster's look in Ultimate Alien Force is terrible. I hope she gets a different costume when she returns.<strong>

**And everyone acts so stupidly in the show. Even the "smart" one, Gwen, doesn't really _think_. It's so sad.**


	3. The Second Summer Part 3

**Me: Welp, it looks like my Fanfiction document editor is flipping out. No icons at the top! They're still there, just without icons. Oh well.**

**I always forget, but Ben 10 and anything else that doesn't belong to me doesn't belong to me. Just so that's clear.**

**In other news, _FU~~~~CK ULTIMATE ALIEN_. Gods, everyone is a dick and completely retarded for no good reason. This franchise zombie needs a shotgun to the head right about now. It's completely drained out everything good about the original show and replaced it with stupid. Just like how Cartoon Network's drained out just about everything good from its line-up and replaced it with UTTER RETARDISM.**

**Moving on.**

* * *

><p>Chapter 3 – The Second Summer (Part 3)<p>

"Now that I _want_ his help, your dippy cousin's nowhere to be found! What's up with that?" Charmcaster complained, stumbling slightly.

"Oh, who was it that walked what must be a mile away? Besides, there's the Rustbucket right there!" Gwen retorted snidely, waving a hand at the battered RV.

"Yippee, slugs and snails and puppy dog tails for dinner," the witch said sarcastically.

"Not sure if we've had that last one… yet!" Charmcaster chuckled.

The Rustbucket exploded.

"… Ben… Grandpa!" Gwen screamed, running forward towards the twisted, flaming wreck.

"Get down!" Charmcaster shouted as she tackled the girl, driving her to the ground as another blast of fire rocketed over their heads. They looked up slowly as their attacker entered the clearing. "Uncle…" she whispered, shaking with fear.

* * *

><p>They were running. They had been running for what seemed like forever, dodging and weaving through the rock field.<p>

"Why the hell's Hex here! ?" Gwen shouted back at the wheezing Charmcaster as she stumbled after her.

"I… don't… know!" she panted, desperately trying to catch up. "We… haven't been… on… good terms since I tried… to take the… the Charms of Bezel… when I first met you…! Got… worse when… I put 'im in jail… though…"

"You put him in jail! ?" Gwen said incredulously, looking back at the witch.

"LOOK OUT IN FRONT-!" Charmcaster screamed.

Too late. Gwen's foot sank into a crack between the rocks and a rebar stake. She twisted awkwardly as her momentum carried her forward. With a sickening snap, her leg bent unnaturally and she screamed in pain as she crashed to the ground.

"GWEN!" Charmcaster screamed, rushing forward and falling to her knees by her side. "No… no, no, no…" she muttered, shaking slightly as she hesitated to reach out to her.

"Charm… Charmcaster… My leg is… is broken…" the red-head head panted, gripping her leg in pain. She looked around as she felt the witch draw away, shuffling to her feet. "Charmcaster…?"

"Uncle…" she mumbled, shaking in fear as the man entered the ravine. Gaunt with gray skin and a face painted like a skull, Hex was hovering above the ground by a foot. His long vest fluttered loosely in the air while the staff with the bird-like head floated by his side.

"Ah… my traitorous niece…" Hex said, landing almost elegantly on the ground. "So you betray me even further by joining with my enemies? How… naïve."

She jerked back, her eyes snapping between the red-head and her uncle. And, eyes glazing over in fear, Charmcaster turned and ran away down the crevasse.

"Charmcaster…" Gwen mumbled, looking over her shoulder as the witch ran, leaving her behind. She snapped her head back around to look at Hex as he started laughing.

"So… she has betrayed you as she has me!" He aimed the bird-headed staff at the red-head, the inside of its beak glowing ominously. "First… I will end your _miserable_, interfering life… and then my _useless_ niece…"

He hesitated when she laughed. "She was always… more of a… a danger than you ever were…!" she choked out, interrupting the man as he started to question her. "You always… always were an idiot…"

His eyes flashed dangerously and his face contorted in rage as he raised the staff, the glow spreading farther into the night.

As he began to swing the staff towards the helpless girl, a loud crumbling noise caught his attention. He looked up and leapt away just as a large boulder collapsed off the ridge above them, nearly crushing the man. Hex looked back when another crunch issued from behind him as his niece landed on the rock.

"Hey, uncle!" Charmcaster shouted, shaking in terror. "You always were an incompetent fool! It's why my dad was our leader and not _you_." She dove to the side as Hex threw a bolt of energy at her with a snarl of rage. She took off running again, pausing to stoop down and pick up a rock, which was thrown at the man's head.

The rock bounced off a magical shield that was erected around him, firing it at speed into the wall. "_CHARMCASTER_!" Hex roared as he lifted into the air and floated after the girl. "THERE WON'T BE ENOUGH OF YOU TO FILL A MATCHBOX WHEN I'M THROUGH!" He started firing blasts of fire and lightning from his staff, sending boulders scattering as his attacks lanced towards the witch.

She was scrambling desperately away, ducking behind rocks and down crevasses. Eventually, she cleared the rock field and found herself directly where she didn't want to be: a grassy clearing with no cover. This strategic failure was further proven when she was blown off her feet by a blast of fire, tumbling across the grass until she rolled to a stop just outside the rocks.

"This is the last time I'll listen to your backtalk, child!" Hex declared, landing behind her as she pushed herself to her knees. He aimed the staff and the glow started emitting from the beak. "I will ensure that you suffer greatly…" he added ominously, the glow turning from yellow to red.

"Of course…" Charmcaster growled, gritting her teeth. "BECAUSE WE'LL BE WALKING TO HELL _TOGETHER_! !" She spun, swinging the rebar she had grabbed from the edge of the rocks into the staff, snapping it just below the head.

"WHAT HAVE YOU DONE! ?" Hex roared, the glow exploding violently around them.

* * *

><p>Gwen watched in horror as the blast expanded, covering a vast area. "No… No! CHARMCASTER!" she screamed, scrabbling at the dirt as she futilely tried to drag herself towards the blast as it started to fade. Tears dripped down her face, dotting the ground. The glow disappeared completely and she slumped to the ground in despair. "How could everything have gone so wrong…? Ben… Grandpa…!" She beat at the ground with her fists, crying despairingly.<p>

And a large, yellow ball crashed into the ground behind her, cratering the rock. After a moment of silence, with Gwen staring at it in astonishment, the yellow, ball-like form of Cannonbolt unfolded, groaning in pain. "That hurt!" Cannonbolt!Ben complained, clutching at where his head approximately was with his large, bulbous hands.

"Ben…? _Charmcaster_! ?" Gwen cried out, lurching back towards the alien, noticing the silver-haired girl splayed out on his chest.

"Ugh… Wha…?" Cannonbolt!Ben said in his deep voice, carefully moving Charmcaster to the ground. He gasped as he took in his cousin's condition. "Gwen! ? What happened! ?"

"Broke… my leg…" she gasped as she finally started to let herself drift towards unconsciousness. "What… about Grandpa…?"

"He shielded us with some Plumber tech, but he got hit on the head and knocked out," Cannonbolt!Ben replied, carefully picking up and carrying Gwen over to where Charmcaster was.

"Plumber… standard issue…?" she asked, chuckling slightly.

"Plumber standard issue," he confirmed with a short laugh as he set her down. After a short pause as he looked her over for any other damage, he added, "I feel bad… I'm unhurt while you have a broken leg and Grandpa and Charmcaster have concussions! I'm the hero, _I_ should be the one all beat up!"

"Don't… beat yourself up… over… it…" the red-head gasped before passing out, leaving Ben to slump in defeat and shame over their prone bodies.

* * *

><p><strong>This marks where the first episode would end, if it were in television format. None of the silliness of Alien Force's premiere. Nor the stupidity.<strong>


	4. Forever Kingdom Part 1

**Me: Well, it's been a while but I am back a with a new installment of Continuity Break! Well, I probably shouldn't be, as I have finals next week. Of course, it's probably only math and game design, but still! Finals! In calculus! That I've already taken-whyamIworryingaboutthis?**

**So, two weeks ago, Ben 10/Generator Rex: Heroes United came out and it. was. AWESOME. Man of Action actually managed to make Ben an enjoyable character again! Funny, witty, sarcastic, ****_competent_****... Heroes United!Ben is just a much better character. And they brought back Upgrade and XLR8! Yes! Some of the better, original aliens from the first series! I fuckin' ****_HATE_**** Fasttrack, because he is just XLR8 repackaged in Nightwing's body. Fuckin'. Nightwing. From Batman. It's retarded. ****_And _****Ben didn't insult my intelligence by shouting out the names of the aliens every! FUCKIN'! ****_TIME_****! Yes!**

**Man of Action even made Humungousaur pretty cool and made Big Chill tolerable again. I used to love Big Chill. He was one of the only aliens I liked in the sequels besides RATH. But his overuse just... put me off. But he is awesome again! Very enjoyable. Unfortunately, Ben's right back to being a bipolar retard in the new episode, "A Knight to Remember".**

**Also, the sequel!Forever Knights piss me off. **

**Dwayne - **"Oh, the _original series'_ Forever Knights were a _splinter cell_ while the _real ones_ just want to kill a dragon, hur hur!"

**Stupid! Fuckin' stupid! So, they're making a comeback in a big way today!**

**I've also come up with my routine: two chapters of Assassin X, a chapter of Continuity Break, and repeat.**

* * *

><p>Chapter 4 – Forever Kingdom (Part 1)<p>

The first thing she heard was two voices. Granted, it took a while for her to realize that over the pounding in her head but, after she had, it was only a quick jump to realizing it was a conversation. The pounding didn't like that. Charmcaster attempted to pull the blankets over her head but was quickly defeated by how tightly they were packed around her body.

"So~~…" the more feminine of the voices said softly, accompanied by the sound of a tapping foot. "Haven't seen _Hex_ anywhere, have we?"

Charmcaster flinched slightly at her uncle's name.

"Neither hide nor hair. Really, I think Charmcaster truly did 'im in with that stunt she pulled!" a much louder, gruffer voice said, though with an inflection that indicated a whisper.

There was a short pause.

"So~~…" the female continued. "_Fourarms_, eh?"

Charmcaster twitched slightly at the mention of one of Ben's aliens and forced her eyes open. Peering around, she identified two shapes at the base of her bed, one short topped with orange and the other a hulking red creature with two pairs of arms.

"Hey!" Fourarms!Ben complained, waving an indignant pair of arms at her. "Gimme a break 'ere! _I_ didn't want Fourarms! I didn't even dial _in_ Fourarms! The Omnitrix is still buggy from when I wrecked the controls last summer."

Charmcaster watched blearily as the red humanoid waved an arm at it shoulder, grimacing as the alien's voice aggravated her headache further.

"Well, you wouldn't have _thought_ of wrecking it in the _first_ place if you hadn't _dived into the Null Void after Vilgax and Kevin_!"

"Oh, don't remind me…" Fourarms groaned, slapping himself in the forehead.

The loud crack finally got the better of her and the witch sat up angrily. "Would the two of you _shaddup_! ?" she shouted, wincing at the noise.

"Charmcaster!" Gwen cried out, hopping forwards excitedly. "How're you doing?" She stumbled, toppling forwards.

"Ah!" Charmcaster started, reaching for her futilely.

"Watch it!" Fourarms!Ben said, grabbing his cousin by the back of her hospital gown and lifting her over to Charmcaster's bedside. "You have to take your leg into account, dweeb."

"Gah… and here I was hoping I could get some rest…" Max groaned, sitting up in his bed to Charmcaster's left.

"Oops… Sorry, Grandpa…" Ben said, giving him a little wave.

"Yeah… sorry 'bout that…!" Gwen added, leaning heavily on Charmcaster's bed. "How're you feeling? Charmcaster?" she asked, directing her attention towards her new friend.

The witch looked up in surprise at the red-head's concern. Eventually, as she watched the other girl's caring smile, an identical look crossed her own face. "Like someone's using my head as an anvil whenever you lot talk," she responded, laughing slightly.

Gwen laughed, shoving at the witch playfully.

* * *

><p>"I'm sorry about your RV, Mr. Tennyson," Charmcaster said as the group walked out a few days later, the girl walking next to the older man. She was still dressed in the hospital clothes she had been given and was carrying a bag filled with her clothes.<p>

"Oh, don't be," he replied, stopping at the edge of the parking lot. "You're not the one who did it."

"But we _still_ don't have a ride. We don't even have a _bicycle_, much less a disguised, alien-busting _tank_!" Gwen reminded him, waving a hand awkwardly over her crutches.

"True… there were a lot of memories in the old Rustbucket…" he said reminiscently, scratching his chin. "Quite a pity." He pulled out a set of keys and clicked a button. And, with a loud roar and a squeal of the brakes, the RV pulled up in front of them.

"What! ? I thought it was destroyed!" Gwen shouted, wobbling wildly. Charmcaster jumped forward and grabbed her by the arm, steadying her.

"It was. This is one of the newer models," Max said over her quiet thank you, waving a hand at the obviously ancient RV. "Remember, there are old Plumber bases all across the planet and they're there to assist any Plumber who finds himself in trouble."

"Like that base in Mount Rushmore?" Charmcaster spoke up, handing Gwen the crutch she had dropped.

"Like the base in Mount Rushmore." There was a short pause. "Have either of you seen Ben?" Max asked, turning to look at the hospital.

The girls glanced at each other. "Actually, I haven't seen him since the first day," Gwen admitted, shrugging. "I've been with Charmcaster the whole time."

They were silent for a moment, looking back at the hospital apprehensively. "Maybe he was abducted," Charmcaster said suddenly, a look of annoyance crossing her face. "By aliens or somethin'."

"We probably would have noticed if something bad happened…!" Gwen said skeptically, raising a brow at the witch.

"Unless he jumped headlong into it!" she retorted, waving a hand dismissively.

"Hey! I'm not that brash anymore!" Fourarms!Ben complained, shoving his way out of the RV.

"Ben! ?" Max said, spinning around in astonishment. "How'd you get in there?"

"And why are you still Fourarms?" Gwen added.

"First question: The RV ran me over a ways down the road while I was searching for you lot. Second: I have no idea! I think the Omnitrix is having a gigantic freak-out or somethin'. It hasn't timed out since last week!" Fourarms growled, first pointing down the road and then slapping angrily at the dial on his shoulder. "But I did get training as a nurse."

Everyone was quiet for a time, staring incredulously at the giant in the doorway. After a while, after a significant crowd had gathered to stare at Ben, Max sighed in defeat, waving the group in. "I give up… Just… everyone on…"

Fourarms stepped back, allowing his grandfather to climb in. As Charmcaster moved to help the struggling Gwen, he added, "You've got to see this fridge! It's gigantic!"

He reached down and lifted both girls through the door, in spite of the witch's protests and quickly shut the door. After a moment, a bright red flash illuminated the windows. "Hey! I'm ba-!… oww…"

* * *

><p>"Come on! You don't look stupid!" Gwen said, pulling at the arm protruding from behind the potted plant. They were at the front of a large shopping complex and they had been there for a few minutes.<p>

"_Yes_… I _do_!" Charmcaster snapped, trying to pry the girl's fingers off of her arm. "I don't wanna get stared at!"

"We're _already_ being stared at, dork! _Because you're hiding in a plant_!" She pulled harder, yanking the witch out from behind the plant. Charmcaster stumbled to a stop, fuming unhappily. She was dressed in one of Gwen's floral blouses and a pair of her pants.

"Your clothing is stupid," she grumbled, tugging at the shirt unhappily.

"Well, you could go back and wear your _two-times-too-big catsuit_ in… but _that_ would make you look _actually_ stupid!" Gwen retorted, pulling her protesting friend farther into the complex.

They walked for a bit, going in and out of various stores in their search for a new wardrobe for the witch. Eventually, after many stores and styles were declined, Charmcaster found something she liked.

"Really?" Gwen said, raising an eyebrow at the girl. "Black and skulls? You're really attempting to be my antithesis, aren't you?"

"Anti-wha?" she asked as she removed the shirt she was trying on.

"Opposite. I'm all bubbles and sunshine!, while you're so oppressively _bleak_," the red-head explained, overacting her personality with a manic smile.

"Why, I have _no idea_ what you mean…!" Charmcaster said with a smile, shrugging as she simultaneously handed the shirt to Gwen, who shook her head with an exasperated laugh. "Let's get two!" the witch added, draping another over Gwen's head.

"You're impossible," she laughed, pulling the shirt down.

"Ooh! Batman!"

"Batman! ?"

* * *

><p>"I didn't take you for a combat-boot-person, Charm," Gwen said, watching the witch stomp childishly in her new, gigantic boots. They were worn leather and rose halfway to her knees with the inch-thick soles giving her an edge in height over Gwen. She had changed out of the red-head's clothes into her new black t-shirt and blue jeans.<p>

"'Charm'?" Charmcaster asked curiously, stopping to look at the girl.

"It gets less weird looks than 'Charmcaster'," Gwen explained, lurching over on her crutches. "And I know how you hate being called weird. It's… sort of a nickname, if you'd like." She smiled, watching her friend expectantly.

Charmcaster hesitated, her eyes softening slightly at how sweet the red-head was being. "I… I, uh…" She started suddenly, blinking as she realized she was stammering and tearing up. She abruptly turned away with a huff, crossing her arms like a shield over her chest. "Whatever…" she mumbled, blushing in embarrassment.

Gwen's smile broadened as she watched the witch fumble around in her attempts to retain her dignity, half-heartedly mumbling excuses and threats. She failed. The red-head cannoned into her, throwing an arm around her friend's shoulder and pulling her into a tight hug. "Aw~~! If it makes you feel any better, you'll always be a bad girl in my eyes!" Gwen grinned, pinching Charmcaster's cheek playfully. "_Charmy_," she added slyly, amending her previous nickname.

She twitched, blushing furiously at the new nickname. "_I will gouge yer eyes out with yer femurs!_" she growled, slipping slightly into a British accent as she made a grab at the red-head.

Gwen danced off, laughing and vaulting around Charmcaster's grabs with her crutch. The witch ran after her, making threats that ranged from the almost-serious ("I'll END you, princess!") to the comedic ("I'll bite yer legs off, you yellow-bellied trollop!").

"You're such a goofball, Charmy!" Gwen laughed, ducking past another wild charge.

"Stop calling me that!" Charmcaster snapped, spinning on her heel and diving for the red-head. And missed, smacking straight into a column. "Ow…" she muttered, sitting down heavily.

"You okay! ?" Gwen asked horrified, hopping over. She dropped to her knees and grabbed her elbow.

"_I'm fine_…" she growled, holding her nose tightly and clamping her eyes shut.

"… Really? 'cause you just face-planted into a column…"

"I did not!" Charmcaster shouted, shooting Gwen a glare.

"Really? Your nose bleed says otherwise."

"_I don't have a nose bleed_," the witch retorted, wiping the blood away. "And there is no column here!" she added, wagging a finger at a point a little to Gwen's right.

"Uh-hunh… You're near-sighted, aren't you?" Gwen said with a slight smirk as she stood up.

"Am not!"

"Yeah… let's get you glasses," the red-head laughed, pulling her friend to her feet.

"I do not need glasses!" Charmcaster cried, protesting feebly as Gwen dragged her along.

"Yes you do."

"No I-!" The lights went out, plunging the center plaza into darkness. "… Fantastic! I've gone blind. No need for glasses now."

"The lights went out, you goof. Come on, once we adjust, let's continue to th-"

At the center of the plaza, a spotlight flicked on causing the confused and murmuring crowd to flinch at the sudden light. The spotlight encompassed a large stage with four large banners at each corner, each with a shield separated into four sections.

"Come one, come all!" a booming voice said, coming from every speaker in the mall. With a click audible over the echoes, trapdoors slid open in the stage.

From each of the seven, one set ahead of the others, men in armor slowly came into view. Each was dressed in trench coats and medieval armor, their faces hidden behind masks. The one who was speaking had a special mask, however. His was gold in color and spikes jutted out all around his head from just above the end of the mask.

"The Forever Knights… have a message!" Enoch announced, he and his knights simultaneously stabbing their swords into the stage.

* * *

><p><strong>It's Enoch! You know, the guy Driscoll and robo-ninja left in the dream machine and later came back as a Ye Olde Butcherede Englishe spewing pansy along with Driscoll himself, who got vaporized by Upchuck. How'd he come back? Who knows, it's not like the guys in charge now give a shit about explaining anything or remaining true to preestablished continuity.<strong>

**You know who annoys me? Old George. What the hell? How does that work? How is he capable of dodging and knocking out people who run around in ALTERNATE DIMENSIONS without even pausing but get surprised by half-dead GIANT SQUID ****_SEQUEL!VILGAX_****? ! And why is Vilgax such a complete retard now? He's ruler of a dozen or so planets and was ridiculously genre savvy. How could he be so stupid?**

**And Eatle. He gets barely any screen time and I already hate him. "Herp-a-derp, I'mma Eatle-" *gets WTF-pwned by armor!Vilgax*. What was the point? Why should we be excited about a new alien WHEN HE'S SO WEAK! ? He got defeated in one blow by sequel!Vilgax, for crying out loud! **

**And I fuckin' hate Fasttrack. He's so stupid. He's even stupider when Ben's shouting his name. Idiot. **

**Also, that last bit when Old George picks up his sword. Ben - **"Hey, stop him!"** AND THEN THEY JUST STAND THERE AND WATCHED FOR A MINUTE WHILE GEORGE WENT SUPER SAIYAN. What. Such terrible writing.**


	5. Forever Kingdom Part 2

**Me: Crap, it's been a while since I've worked on either of my stories. Got lazy and busy with things. **

**I've started a collection of all the original episodes of Ben 10, from "And Then There Were Ten" to "The Secret of the Omnitrix". It's really revealed a lot of the canon that Ultimate Alien Force has discarded at random. Actually, I realized a massive discrepancy between the two series's Kevins and had a bit of rant about it on my deviantArt.**

**"**Guys guys! Listen!

The guys in charge of Ultimate Alien Force, like so many other things, got it wrong! While making it so that everything is "LOL! Aliens!", something utterly stupid in and of itself, they goofed with Kevin's original powers! While making it so that Kevin's powers came from LOLiens and not a mutation like Cooper's powers was stupid, they goofed with the statistics of the original DNA-absorbing powers. You want to know why?

Here it is: they made it so his (and other "Osmosians") absorbing powers only netted them a tenth of the powers they absorbed.

Now you might be wondering why this is a mistake. You might be saying, "But this is how it was in the original series." But, from my point of view, it's not. When Kevin absorbed Heatblast's powers, or Four Arms', he was on par with Ben! Four Arms!Kevin was just as strong as the regular Four Arms and Heatblast!Kevin had the same firepower as the regular Heatblast. It was only the MUTANT Kevin that had diminished power.

It was the same with Ben when he popped the faceplate off the Omnitrix, resulting in combo-platter aliens like Stink Arms and Diamond Matter. Both only had HALF the power of their source aliens!

Kevin had the FULL power of the aliens he absorbed when he used them on their own and they only dropped to a tenth of their source alien when he mutated: when he became a composite of all TEN accessible aliens! Really, "Osmosians" are just a cheap excuse to make Kevin a sympathetic character instead of the sociopath he originally was.**"**

**All of my hate, not-Man of Action. _All of my hate_! **

**One more thing! Did you know the only place I've been able to find "Secret of the Omnitrix" is on eBay? It's not at the library, Blockbuster, or Netflix but "Alien Swarm" and "Race Against Time" are! So annoying.**

**One more thing! Apparently, when Ultimate Alien starts airing again in February, there is going to be an episode called "The Enemy of My Frenemy". I can only assume it's going be an episode involving Charmcaster. Here's hoping she gets a better design as well as more importance, but that is unlikely, unfortunately. She would have been a far better third than sequel!Kevin. Maybe Gwen wouldn't have gotten chickified and useless.**

**One _more_ thing! ... Moving on.**

* * *

><p>Chapter 5 – Forever Kingdom (Part 2)<p>

"The Forever Knights! ?" Gwen hissed from where she and Charmcaster were crouched behind a raised brick structure holding plants. "What are _they_ doing here! ?"

"Why are you asking _me_?" Charmcaster hissed back, glancing at her from where she was peering through the plants.

"Because you've worked with them before!" the red-head retorted, using her good leg to push herself up so she could do the same.

"I briefly teamed up with that lunatic Forever King and that ninja guy, _princess_! I don't know anything about these metal nitwits…" The witch looked away indignantly.

Gwen hesitated and then reached out to her friend. "Sorry. I shouldn't have jum-!"

Charmcaster spun around and cut her off, clamping her hand over Gwen's mouth. "Shhh! Look!" she hissed, pointing down the hall towards the main doors.

"Wha-?"

Coming up the shop fronts were a line of knights, spanning the hall and shepherding the shoppers before them. In front, a group of four guided a large hovering cube covered in a blue cloth towards the stage.

"What do you think it is?" Gwen asked, peering over Charmcaster's shoulder.

The pair jumped when a loud crash startled them. Turning slowly, they looked up at a group of Forever Knights looming behind them. One had smashed the end of his staff into the ground to get their attention.

"You'll be getting the answer to that real soon, kiddies…" he told them, menacing them with halberd. The node in the center of the blade glowed red and he used it to motion the girls towards the stage.

* * *

><p>There was a loud crack. "<em>OW~~<em>!" Ben cried, contorting around his grandfather's knuckles.

"Sorry 'bout that, sport!" Max apologized, letting up on the massage. "But, until your muscle memory resets, your body's gonna keep thinking it's got an extra pair of arms."

"I _know_…" the boy groaned, rolling over on the table.

"You go lay down on the couch, I'll go-" The old man was cut off by a loud knocking on the door. "-answer the door and _then_ go make you something to eat." Ben flinched, horrified, and rolled off the table. He grunted as he landed on the seat.

The banging continued, growing louder with each hit.

"I'm coming, I'm coming!" Max called as he walked over to the door. The knocking rose to a crescendo, shaking the RV with its force. "WHAT?" he snapped, forcefully opening the door.

"Don't get an attitude, pops!" the knight snarled, waving the red-edged sword under his nose, causing him to lurch back. A second knight with a pole arm stood behind him as backup. "You and whoever else is in there are to come with us."

"'s that so…?" Max growled, his hand inching to his right.

"Yeah, that's-!" The knight was cut off as the ex-Plumber swung the frying pan he had been reaching for into his head, knocking him aside and causing his helmet to ring from the impact.

"What the hell are you _doing_, retard! ?" the other knight cried, leveling his weapon and charging. With a flick of his wrist, Max knocked the weapon to the side so the energy bolt discharged harmlessly into the air and slammed the door in the knight's face, knocking him back.

"Grandpa! What's wrong! ?" Ben shouted, watching as his grandfather rushed to a cabinet on the other side of the RV.

"I'll handle this Ben!" he shouted, noting his grandson's hunched back and pained expression. Kicking the base of the cabinet, he caught the long-barreled gun that flipped out of a hidden panel and spun to face the door. He cocked the gun as the energy-imbued sword cut through the door like it was butter, admitting the infuriated knights.

"Oh, now you're in for it, you…! you… Uh…" He stopped, staring down the barrel of Max's gun.

He grinned. "Surprise," he said menacingly, pulling the trigger. With a flash of red, the two knights were sent flying back into the side of the mall, their armor smoking from the attack.

"Whoa!" Ben said, awestruck. "That was awesome, grandpa!"

"I had the advantage of surprise, nothing more," he said, setting the gun onto the counter. "Now, if the Forever Knights are gathering people up _outside_ the mall, then what are the conditions _inside_ of it?"

"Gwen!" the boy realized, struggling to straighten up. "Going hero!" he added, reaching for the Omnitrix.

"Turn into Four Arms. I'll follow shortly!" Max told his grandson, turning to one of the closets.

"Right! I-!" he began, pressing the button to pop the dial up. He started to turn it but hesitated as the implications of what Max had said caught up with him. "_Four Arms_! ? You _never_ tell me to turn into Four Arms!"

"_I_ tell you to fight intelligently and right now…!"

"… the most intelligent thing to do would be to use the alien least affected by my muscle memory!" Ben realized, grinning as he flipped through his choices until he arrived at the familiar, four-armed humanoid. "Hero Time!" he shouted, leaping from the RV and slapping a hand down on the dial.

Max winced at the bright flash of green. As the light faded, he looked back out of the door and groaned in exasperation at what he saw; the alien Ben had turned into was decidedly not bulky, red Four Arms. Blue, sleek, and looking like a technologically-armored velociraptor, XLR8 groaned and slapped his three-fingered hands over his eyes.

* * *

><p>Gwen and Charmcaster stood shoulder-to-shoulder in the murmuring crowd, looking around restlessly. At each entrance into the main hall, a group of Forever Knights wielding the energy-infused pole arms and swords cut off the shoppers' escape. The cloth-covered cube had been moved to the center of the stage and its four sentinels standing watch at each corner as before. Enoch and the knights already assembled there had moved off to the sides.<p>

"What do you think they're planning, Gwen?" Charmcaster muttered. She shifted slightly, grabbing her friend's shirt and biting her lip worriedly.

"Dunno…" the red-head replied, glancing over at the witch and noticing her shaking hands and shoulders. She reached over with her other arm and placed it comfortingly on the girl's shoulder and smiled when her gaze shifted from her feet to her friend's face. "We'll be alright, Charmcaster. We've been through worse."

"Not without my magic… I feel so… _naked_ without it… so _helpless_…" Her soft mumbles faded away and she buried her face in Gwen's shoulder. The red-head's smile faded and she threw her other arm around Charmcaster's shoulders, hugging her gently.

"Listen to me, you ignorant sheep," Enoch started, throwing his arms wide as his voice was amplified by the speakers throughout the mall. The girls separated slightly to watch as he hobbled to the front of the stage, a knight close behind.

"His muscles have atrophied drastically. He must have spent a long time in his lotus eater…" Gwen noted, letting her arms drop.

Charmcaster turned to stare at her incredulously.

"… Dream machine."

"_Thank_ you, Princess Encyclopedia!"

"You have been lied to!" Enoch continued, his eyes flashing along the rapidly silencing crowd. Gwen ducked as his head turned towards where they were standing. He hesitated at the sudden movement but quickly moved on. "While some of you have developed seemingly wild conspiracy theories, the truth of the matter is far more extreme than any of you could have imagined!"

The crowd's muttering started up again, some of the more vocal accusing him of being anything from insane to drunk. "What is he up to? This doesn't sound like it'll help them take over the world…" Gwen remarked, sneaking a look through a gap in the crowd.

"Because _I'm_ omniscient in the ways of crazy knights!" Charmcaster snarked.

"Your corrupt governments have hidden the truth! The truth… about aliens!" Enoch snapped his fingers, nodding towards the guards. With a quick flick of the wrist, the guards sent the cloth to the ground, revealing its contents.

The tall humanoid launched forwards with a roar, making a grab at the closest knight with all four of its arms. It was dressed in ragged jeans and the remainder of a t-shirt and had pale-red skin. Besides the paler coloration and smaller, leaner body, it looked almost identical to Ben's Four Arms.

"Not only do aliens exist, _they walk among us even now_! Taking the positions of governor, mayor, even _president_!" Enoch shouted, stepping forward to the edge of the stage and leaning heavily on his sword. "There is an _infestation_… and only the _Forever Knights_ have the solution!"

The Tetramand in the cage lunged forwards again, grabbing a knight by his helmet and dragging him towards the cage. Incoherent roars sent the crowd scrambling back to a safer distance, muttering about how monstrous it was.

"Back! Get back!" another knight shouted, jabbing the alien in the ribs with his pole arm. Electricity coursed along his body, knocking him back to the center of the cage.

"Do you see? Creatures such as these only want our _destruction_! Our _subservience_!" Enoch roared, waving an arm wide. "Since the governments of the world refuse to defend us against these _abominations_… the only ones to turn to are the _Forever Knights_!"

"_What_! ?" Gwen hissed, lurching upright. "I've met a _bunch_ of aliens and all they've ever wanted was the _Omnitrix_! They didn't care about humans _at all_!"

Another series of roars marked the Tetramand attempting to pry the bars of the cage apart, lurching back when they coursed with electricity. Gwen looked closer, shrugging off Charmcaster's attempts to get her to move and ignoring the proclamations of Enoch.

Suddenly, she shoved her way forward towards the front of the crowd. "Hey! Maybe if you would pay attention, you'd see that his lip movements don't match his voice! Maybe he's only dangerous because you've locked him in a cage!" she shouted, pointing out some details that the crowd had overlooked.

While this set the crowd murmuring again, it turned out to be a bad decision. "Ah… Gwendolyn Tennyson…" Enoch said, giving her his undivided attention.

"Uh oh…"

"This girl is one example of those who have been corrupted by these menaces!" he roared, pointing at her. "Her actions and of those like her have directly ruined our attempts to defend our planet from _invasion_!"

The crowd immediately started to back away from her, watching her in alarm. "What. What could _I_ do! ? I have a _broken leg_!" she shouted at them, waving a hand indignantly. Eventually, a large semicircle of people attempting to get as far away from harm stood before the two girls and the stage.

"Wow. Smart move, princess."

"_Shut up_~~!"

"Knights! Dispose of this trash!" Enoch commanded, waving his followers forward. As the knights moved forwards, Enoch collapsed into a coughing fit. One of the knights stopped and grabbed him by the elbow and led him off the stage.

"What now, smartass?" Charmcaster growled, back-to-back with her friend.

"One option: we fight and win or we die!" Gwen responded, twirling her crutch as the knights closed in and the crowd ran for the exits.

"Great! We're going to die."

* * *

><p><strong>I'm making the Forever Knights a legitimate threat again, not like the pansy Monty-Python-and-Ye-Olde-Butcherede-Englishe-spewing Forever-Knight-wannabe's in Ultimate Alien Force.<strong>

**Thank you, **Wielder of the NerdiTrix**, who shall be henceforth referred to as **WONT**, for your comments and character and plot suggestions. In fact, your character is going to get a brief cameo in the next chapter. I'd also been planning on an alternate dimension hopping arc after Ledgerdomain and you've given me some good ideas for it. Excellent work, dear fellow.**

**Also, who can guess the identity of the Tetramand in the cage? Hint: it's someone who was entirely misused in Alien Force.**


	6. Forever Kingdom Part 3

**Me: I felt bad about my laziness so I've given you _two_ chapters (OMGWTFBBQ) instead of one before getting to the next chapter of Assassin X. And maybe a little intermission for flavor. I dunno.**

**Thank you for the review, **omega-z man**. However, Enoch's comments are not to be taken very seriously. He's a manipulator, so he's going to bring up topics that are emotionally charged to get a rise. However, it may make for an interesting story further on down the road. It may or may not come to pass. I don't know yet.**

**Don't worry, **WONT**. Articguana, as well as the other aliens Ben 10000 used, will be getting their debut on the young Ben's wrist later as well as a few of the Ultimate Alien Force aliens and my own creations. Actually, your idea for entering an alternate dimension with a Ben/Kevin team-up is actually a perfect opportunity, considering what I've planned for it.**

**Though I might bring Articguana in as one of the three aliens Ben unlocked during the school year, along with one of my own creations. The third is up in the air so far. Any ideas, readers?**

* * *

><p>Chapter 6 – Forever Kingdom (Part 3)<p>

The group of Forever Knights closed in on the girls, their weapons glowing with their signature red light.

"Sorry 'bout this, kid, but orders are orders!" one said as he closed in on Gwen. "Sayonara!" He lifted his sword high in preparation for an attack.

"Whatever you say…!" she retorted as she lurched forwards and planted the end of her crutch onto the ground. Using it as a fulcrum, she twisted forwards and drove her foot into the man's neck. He fell back, coughing fitfully. His sword was sent flying, eventually driving itself into the floor next to Charmcaster's foot.

She yelped and jumped aside slightly, looking back at Gwen as she knocked aside another sword that was driven at her with her crutch and then used it to hit the offending knight in the head. She grabbed the sword out of his hand and hurled it at another, but missed. A cough behind her brought her attention back to the other knights.

"Get out'a here, girly!" one knight told her, thumbing a hand over his shoulder.

"'Girly'?" Charmcaster said, a fake smile plastered on her face.

"Uh…" He threw himself back as she took ahold of the sword next to her and started swinging wildly at them, an angry grimace replacing the smile. The knights stepped back, watching as she swung blindly at where they were standing.

One of her swings sent the tip of the sword whizzing past Gwen's arm. "Hey! You know what's useful in a fight? Eyes!" she shouted, ducking another of her friend's wild swings before twisting to knock another knight's slash off course.

Charmcaster stopped, looking back in alarm. "I'm sorry!" she cried out, taking a slash at an approaching knight. "I wasn't-!" She paused again and the knight took the opportunity to grab the sword out of her hands. She gasped, stumbling forward into a rising knee. The witch was knocked back, her nose bleeding freely again, and collapsed to the ground next to Gwen.

Distracted, the red-head let her guard down as she glanced at her friend fearfully. The distraction was quickly taken advantage of as one of the knights she had been fending off stepped forward and cut through her crutch with ease. Experience prompted her to shift back as soon as she felt the strike coming, getting only her shoulder scratched and the end of her crutch striking her in the forehead, knocking her down.

"I'm sorry, Gwen…" Charmcaster muttered, crestfallen as her friend crashed to the floor. "I'm useless like this…"

"Don't worry… we bought ourselves just enough time with this…" Gwen responded, smirking slightly even as the knights closed in, raising their swords to deal the final blow.

It never came.

"Wha…? Behind you!" one knight shouted, letting his sword drop as he pointed over the girls' heads at the stage. The three knights with their backs to it turned to look just in time for one to take a red elbow to the neck and the other two to have their heads violently smashed together.

'Ha! Who's top dog now! ?' the Tetramand mouthed, his voice translated into an incoherent roar as he pointed mockingly at the knights he just defeated.

"Hey, idiot!" Gwen called, sitting up and waving at him. He looked up, scowling at the insult. "The collar around your neck is translating everything you say into roaring." She pointed at her own neck to illustrate her point.

'…Huh? Wait, _what_? _Oh_~~, they did _not_-!' He reached up and ripped the offending device in half, tossing the fragments to the floor. "-_do_ that!" he shouted intelligibly, turning his attention to the rest of the knights. "Hey… you wanted a monster? _THEN I MIGHT AS WELL OBLIGE_! !" He hurled himself over the girls, cannoning into the knights and sending them flying.

One managed to duck his bull rush and lifted his sword for attack. He hesitated when the Tetramand lifted a sword of his own with his only unused hand.

"… Crap…"

"Oh, nice shot, by the way!" the alien added, turning back to give Gwen a thumbs-up as he reached out and set the knight flying with a blind strike.

"Why, _thank_ you!" she responded smugly as Charmcaster helped her to her feet.

"What? 'Nice shot'? What's he… oh!" Charmcaster started before realizing what he meant. "When you threw the sword, you weren't aiming for the _knight_…"

"I was aiming for the _cage_!" Gwen confirmed, grinning. Both girls winced as the Tetramand smashed the sword into the knight's, sending him flying across the room and into a wall.

He turned on the rest of the knights, who were now giving the group a wide berth. "Come on! _Who wants a piece a' Manny_! ?" he shouted, clapping his upper arms to his chest. A knight promptly shot the alien with his pole arm. "_OW_!"

The others quickly followed his lead, leveling their weapons at them. A hail of energy blasts sent the girls diving behind the durable Manny, who absorbed the blasts.

"Don't hide behind me!" he shouted, grunting in pain before hurling the sword at his attackers. The knights ducked the spinning blade, some turning to watch it scythe through the foliage behind them. They were immediately knocked out as Manny bulldozed into the group, snatching weapons from them to use as he flailed wildly.

"You okay?" Charmcaster asked as she helped Gwen to her foot.

"Yeah… thanks…" she said, throwing an arm around the witch's shoulders for support. She smiled up at her friend but switched to confusion when she looked away nervously. "Hey… what's-?" She cut off, trying to maintain her balance as the ground shook violently.

"… The hell's that?" Manny asked, looking up from where he was trying to rip the helmets off of two knights he had in separate headlocks.

From one of the hallways, three knights stomped out into the vast auditorium. The two knights in front had smaller, leaner armor than the regular knights while the third loomed over them, being less of a suit of armor and more of a hulking combat robot. In shape, it looked almost like an Arburian Pelota while the sleeker knights were more like a Kineceleran.

Another trait they shared with the species was its super-speed. As the lumbering robot stomped forward slowly, the sleek knights drew their swords and shot forwards towards the girls. They stumbled back in horror.

They needn't have worried. As the blurs of grey neared the two, a faster blur of blue and black smashed through them, sending them crashing to the ground with their armor shattered. XLR8 ran back around, skidding to a stop in front of the girls.

"You okay?" he asked, his reptilian voice hissing through the faceplate.

"Ben!" Gwen said, her face brightening briefly before his question really sank in. "_We_… are _fine_…" she told him pointedly, glaring.

"… Yeah… that's what I meant…" XLR8!Ben said, glancing at Charmcaster.

Charmcaster opened her mouth to shout at him but was cut off as Manny jogged up. "_Helen_! ?" he cried, leaning down to get a good look at Ben.

Everyone paused, staring at the half-Tetramand in confusion. XLR8's faceplate snapped up. "Eh?" he said, staring at him.

"… _You're_ not Helen," he noted dryly, standing up straight again.

"I should hope not!"

"You shouldn't underestimate me!" the hulking robot's pilot roared, lumbering forwards. "You can't _possibly_ defeat _me_, you-!"

"Yeah, yeah, 'alien scum', 'freak', 'get off this planet'…" XLR8 said, cutting him off. "Listen, can we get on with it? My back is _killing_ me!"

He rocketed forwards, blurring towards the robot. About half way, though, he lurched in pain and fell to the ground, skidding to the foot of the robot. The threesome gasped in horror as the machine reared back and punched down at the prone alien. XLR8 leapt to the side just in time, but the attack shattered the ground in such a way as to send him flying into the ceiling.

The robot backhanded Ben through a wall as he fell back to earth. He bounced off the floor of the dining hall and skidded across a table, coming to rest at the end. "Aw, _man~~_! My back really _is_ killing me!" he muttered, rubbing his head. He looked up.

"Hey, Ben," the blond boy said, looking down at him. He was about the same height as Ben and was wearing a purple tank top with a yellow number 3 on it over a white t-shirt and cargo shorts.

"Cooper! ?"

"What's up?" the boy said, waving at the alien. XLR8's eyes narrowed. "… Oh, you're not still mad about the ticket thing, are you?"

"Yes. Yes, I am," he admitted flatly. A scream cut off any further argument. "Gwen!" he shouted, spinning around. He leapt from the table and shot off, leaving Cooper standing alone.

"Hey, what about-?" he started before XLR8 rushed back and carried him off.

They shot into the auditorium, skidding to a stop behind the giant robot. It had converted into a ball, just as an Arburian Pelota would, and had produced spikes across its body. It was trying to crush Manny, who was struggling to keep it from moving forward with his lesser strength. Gwen was on her back, struggling with her leg, while Charmcaster stood over her, fending off two knights using one of their pole arms.

"Quick! Go break that robot!" XLR8 told Cooper as he dropped him off and pointing at the machine.

"What are you going to… do…?" he asked, turning around to find XLR8 had run off to his cousin's rescue. He sighed and hesitantly stepped up to the side of the machine, placing his hands on it. His eyes glowed blue briefly and, when the glow faded, he stepped back confidently.

The machine folded back out into it robot form and turned on him, raising a fist. He turned to run just as Manny turned to jump roaring at the machine. It reacted instantly, spinning at its waist to grab the half-Tetramand as he fell towards it.

Cooper stopped when he heard Manny scream in pain as the machine started to crush him. "Oh, no! I'll help yo-!" he started as he turned to go back, only to flinch away when a blue bolt of energy lanced through the arm, dropping it to the floor.

As Manny attempted to extricate himself from its grip, the robot turned again to find its newest attacker. It didn't have to look hard.

"Hey! Why don't you pick on someone with your own level of technology! ?" Max yelled, aiming the large chest-mounted cannon. A pull of the triggers sent another lance of energy burning through the robot's chest, leaving a large hole through it.

The still-conscious Forever Knights took a step back as the machine started sparking. One pulled a phone from his pocket and speed-dialed, holding it to where his ear would be. "Pull us out! _All_ of us… but leave the robot as a parting gift…" he shouted into the phone when it connected.

Each of the knights, regardless of their state, flashed with a blue light and faded away. Eventually, the only things left of them were fragments of their armor… and the violently rumbling machine. XLR8 gasped as it bulged, a high-pitched whine starting to emanate from the stressed metal. He launched forwards, looping around the robot and grabbing both Cooper and Manny as he ran back to the girls.

Cooper managed to stay on his feet when XLR8 lurched violently and crashed to the floor, dragging Manny with him into the wall. He winced as the larger half-Tetramand smashed the smaller Kineceleran into the wall, but quickly turned his attention to Gwen.

"Hey," he greeted her, waving. Her eyes narrowed, just as Ben's had. "Oh, what? You, too! ?"

"'You, too' what?" Charmcaster asked, stepping forward curiously.

Cooper glanced at her briefly. "This is about the tickets I didn't ha-" He stopped abruptly and turned back to stare at the witch in shock. "Wha…! ? Is _that_-! ?" he started to ask Gwen, pointing at the ex-criminal.

"Yes, yes she is," the red-head cut him off, waving a hand absent-mindedly. "It's a _long_ story."

"What's a long story?" Manny asked as he popped up again, XLR8 draped over his shoulder.

"None of your business, that's what!" Charmcaster snapped.

Manny stared at her incredulously. "_Oh~_, you wanna go a few rou-! ?"

"Here, hold this," Max interrupted, shoving the cannon into Manny's arms, much to everyone's surprise. "I need to go get the security tapes. The thr-" He stopped and did a quick headcount. "-_five_ of you to go ba-oh, hey Cooper-back to the RV. I'll catch up," he told them, pointing towards the vehicle and giving Cooper a little wave before jogging off.

The eclectic group watched him get to the stairs and pause to catch his breath before heading up. They were silent for a moment before Charmcaster turned and walked off in a huff, Cooper close behind trying to get some answers from her. XLR8 skated along after them, occasionally lurching in pain, while Manny made an attempt to fire the cannon. Gwen promptly slapped him.

* * *

><p>"… Wait, let me get this straight…" Manny started, chuckling slightly. They were headed down the road towards the mall Cooper's parents were at and the quintuplet was seated around the RV while Max drove. "You're telling me that mutants, secret agents, <em>aliens<em>, and _witches_ are fighting medieval knights with super-tech who are trying to take over the world." He gestured at each one as he referred to them.

"Sounds about right," Ben said, having since changed back to his normal self. Regardless, his back was still bothering him so he was lying on the floor.

They were silent for a moment. And then Manny burst out laughing, clutching his sides and banging on the chair he was in. He was laughing so hard he missed the flash of green light.

"Oh, _man_, you can_not_ expect me to _believe_… that… drivel?" he managed through his laughter as he wiped away his tears but he grew quiet when he realized something was standing in front of him. He looked up. He leapt to his feet and continued looking up until he could see a very similar face looking down at him. "Whoa! What's up with _that_! ?" he shouted, pointing up at Four Arms' face while looking to Gwen for answers.

Ben was the one to give him his answer. Dropping to one knee, he threw a massive arm over Manny's shoulders. "_Aliens_," he told him simply, grinning like a loon. Manny nodded slowly.

And the engine dropped out of the RV.

* * *

><p><strong>Actually, I've also discovered a really <em>massive<em> mistake concerning sequel!Kevin's powers. In "The Forge of Creation", Kevin winds up absorbing the DNA from the Ultimatrix and going insane. The problem with this is that the late Dwayne _confirmed_ that only absorbing _energy_ makes "Osmosians" go insane, NOT DNA OR MATTER! So why did Kevin _go insane WHEN HE ONLY ABSORBED DNA_! ? If not for the fact that I think that the writers are _completely incompetent_, I'd almost suspect Kevin of just using the opportunity to let himself flip out!**

**Gods... It's sad when people can't even hold to the continuity established in _their own_ series, much less that of the original...**


	7. Intermission 1

**Me: So, my second semester of freshie college has started. It's very interesting, but now I have a class every day of the work week, as opposed to last semester when a class ended about halfway through, leaving my Mondays as wide open as my Wednesdays, i.e., completely. However, my weeks now are very symmetric with only one class in the afternoon on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays and my schedule on Tuesdays and Thursdays being almost exactly the same. It's odd.**

**Now for some Q&A! Lessee...**

**The concept drawing on my deviantArt is more of a structure for the story, having been drawn to match up with the others in the series - Ben 10: Original Series, Ben 10000, Gwen 10, and Ultimate Alien Force. Because I drew it up before starting the story, many bits that were described in the picture's description are going to be changed. In fact, my writing style tends to be extremely fluid, so I don't always know where the story will end up. Some of the twists might even surprise me, as seen with the descriptions in the X-Dex, also on my deviantArt. They just... take on a life of their own, in a way.**

**Manny and Cooper, as well as the Forever Knights and the others that will be introduced, weren't mentioned on the picture because I hadn't determined where they would be part of the story. They found their way into the story in the last two chapters, since I needed an alien-esque character that I wouldn't need to overtly flesh-out to have been captured by the Knights and I was going to need to pull Cooper back in since the destruction of the Rustbucket in chapter 2. Both are going to be leaving the story for a bit in an "episode" or two, Manny to search for Helen and Cooper to continue on his own vacation with his parents.**

**I actually remembered who I was going to include from the future episodes! The future alien will be showing up in the next episode. Articguana might be shunted down the line a bit. Or not, I don't know yet.**

**My problem with Humungousaur isn't so much that it's dumb as much as it's very bland. We already have a few heavy-hitters, all more aesthetically interesting than Baby-Bop-gone-bad. Even Four Arms is more interesting, considering how simple he is. We just don't need another to add to the mix.**

**My problem with _Alien X_ is that he is _phenomenally_ useless. It's not that he's a bad alien, it's just that his powers are completely out-of-place for a grim-dark teenage drama + some alien fights. He _is_ an interesting alien with interesting powers but he's what Superman would be like if his powers only worked during full moons on the second Tuesday of the March of a year divisible by thirteen. Completely not a good alien for an action series. He'll show up further down the line. I'm just going to need to work around Serena and Belecus to use him.**

**Your aliens are interesting, **WONT**. I'll seriously consider their inclusion somewhere, if only as recurring aliens.**

* * *

><p>Intermission 1<p>

The book snapped shut. "So… how's your head?" Gwen asked, setting it aside. After checking in on her new friend the day before, she was back in her hospital bed with her foot up in a sling. Charmcaster was sitting in a chair she had pulled up next to the bed and looked up in surprise at the sudden question.

"Oh! Uh… it's… it's fine…" she stammered, looking down again nervously.

Gwen set the book down on the end table. "You okay?" she asked, reaching out and setting her hand on top of the witch's. Her grip instantly tightened as Charmcaster flinched and attempted to pull away. "Charmcaster?"

"I…! Sorry…" she mumbled, hesitantly making motions like she was going to pry the other girl's fingers off. "I've… never really had a… a _friend_ before… It's… _difficult_…"

Gwen squeezed her hand comfortingly, smiling softly. "_I'm_ your friend now… That's a Gwendolyn Guarantee!" she told the girl.

She looked up again, smiling hesitantly. "Thanks…" she muttered, twisting her hand around to return Gwen's grip.

The red-head rolled her eyes and pulled. Charmcaster was yanked up onto Gwen's lap with a quiet squeak of alarm and immediately made an attempt to vacate the bed; an attempt that was thwarted when Gwen grabbed her and pulled the witch back to her chest, restraining her with a bear hug.

"The _hell_ are you _doing_, princess! ?" she shrieked, tugging at the arms cinched around her stomach and blushing furiously. "Leggo!"

"Until you _talk_ to me, you're _not_ getting away!" Gwen told her, smirking as she tightened her grip even more.

"Gah, fine!" Charmcaster conceded, letting herself droop in the red-head's arms. "What do you want me to say?"

"_Everything_!" Gwen said, relaxing a bit and resting her chin on the witch's shoulder. "I want to know _everything_ about you."

"That doesn't help!" she complained, glancing at her friend and leaning away slightly. "I don't know how to _do_ this!"

Gwen paused, thinking about what she wanted to know. "Well… things like… your hair!" She reached up with one hand and played with Charmcaster's bangs, laughing when she slapped the hand away in embarrassed annoyance. "It's not really a nor-_average_… hair color here." She corrected herself as she approached something akin to an accusation of being weird.

Charmcaster hesitated slightly. "My hair color… is something of an… _indication_ of my heritage. My people undergo some physical change around… eh, age five." She stopped and glanced at Gwen, seeking approval.

"Go on," she said encouragingly, smiling gently.

Charmcaster took a deep breath before launching into the next part. "It can be anything from a change in hair color, like myself, to…" She paused and clicked her tongue as she thought. "… eh, growing extra body parts, like a hand coming out of their nose!" She planted a hand against her own nose in imitation, making gripping motions.

Gwen burst out laughing, collapsing back on the bed and pulling the witch down next to her. "Seriously! ?" she gasped out.

"Totally! There've even been guys with octopi for heads!" she told her, using her fingers to indicate face-tentacles and crossing her eyes at her friend.

Gwen, almost calmed down, burst out laughing again, pounding on the bed. Charmcaster chuckled slightly but quickly calmed down and smiled wistfully at the gasping red-head.

She also calmed down after a while and smiled up at the witch. "But it's not all that innocent to you… is it?" she asked quietly, looping her arm around the Charmcaster's.

She swallowed nervously and took a deep breath before continuing. "It's also an indication as to… how much inner magic an individual has." She reached up and ran her hand through her hair. "Simple color changes like this have very little inner magic while severe mutations are those with a massive reserve… like yours." She glanced over, pouting with barely restrained jealousy.

"_Excuse_ me, but _I_ don't have an arm growing out of my forehead," Gwen pointed out, squeezing Charmcaster's arm gently.

"Your heritage wasn't steeped in magic like mine was, so that's to be expected…" She sighed before starting again. "But even those weren't the most powerful. The most powerful were the ones that seemed… alive, in a way… like my father's."

"What did he have?"

"Oh, my father, was he ever the most powerful mage there! His mutation was similar to uncle's tattoos, but alive," she said, smiling longingly. "I spent many nights watching his tattoos travel across his skin while he read to me… sometimes, two or three would get into fights." She laughed ruefully, her eyes watering.

"Oh, Charmcaster…" Gwen said quietly, hugging the teary-eyed girl gently, her own eyes shimmering in sympathy. "You don't have to keep going if you don't want to…"

"No!" Charmcaster barked around her almost desperate laughing. "It hurts but… it's not so bad… talking with you, it's… lighter, somehow…" She let herself fall back to the mattress and curled up into Gwen's side.

"Two can carry more than one…" Gwen repeated, squeezing her friend's shoulder comfortingly. "So… tell me more…"

"Well…" the witch started with a smile, rolling over slightly so she could look up at the red-head. "Let's see…"

* * *

><p><strong>This intermission takes place during the hospital stay at the beginning of the previous episode. I like Ledgerdomain and Charmcaster's backstory that was set up in "Where the Magic Happens". It's very interesting, but underused...<strong>

**...**

**Crap, Charmcaster's coming back soon. I really hope her design's changed for the better when she does. If it hasn't, I'll be seriously pissed off.**

**I've come up with my own backstory for Ledgerdomain, Bezel, and the stone golems that are there. It's going to be different, I can assure you.**


	8. Shock and Awe Part 1

**Me: So, many of you have probably realized that the guys in charge of the Ben 10 sequels are _idiots_. Not only are they completely _wrecking_ the characters (replacing them with new ones rather than believable development), _they can't seem to write a continuous story_. Seriously, "The Enemy of My Frenemy" and "Couple's Retreat" are complete _bullshit_. Not only are they terrible episodes on their _own_, with terrible writing and shitty characterization, _they don't fit in with what's been set up in previous episodes_, particularly "Where the Magic Happens". It's like "The Enemy of My Frenemy" is completely _ignoring_ the little character development that happened in the previous 'Charmcaster' episode and _has given her Kevin's old sociopathic nature_! And then "Couple's Retreat" writes 'Charmcaster' as a complete _psycho_, ignoring the fact that, in the previous episode, _she had just killed over 600,000 sentient creatures to bring back her father, who promptly went off and died again_!**

**Plus, I'm calling Mary-Sue-naming-convention bullshit on Charmcaster's 'real' name being _'Hope'_. It's an alternate dimension of magic! _Why would she be called 'Hope'? _At least I have a way to distinguish between the original Charmcaster and the sequel's 'Charmcaster'. From now on, I'll be using Hope to refer to the sequel!Charmcaster.**

**For more in depth reviews of these episodes, visit my deviantART account, Assassin-VariableX. I'll eventually start reviewing all of the episodes, just to get my temper out of my system.**

**On another note, I'm setting up the story like the seasons from the original Ben 10. The original Ben 10 had seasons that were about thirteen episodes long, which is what I'll be aiming at. Starting here, I'll be adding the season number over the chapter. I'd go back to add it to the previous "episodes" but I'm lazy and would need to re-upload all the chapters.**

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><p>Season 1<p>

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><p>Chapter 7 – Shock and Awe (Part 1)<p>

"_This_… is _so_ cool," the tall man said, waving an arm to indicate the rest of the lobby and the people in it. He was dressed in an unbuttoned blazer layered over a black t-shirt and jeans with a chain loop hanging off it. His head was shaved and his features were a little Russian. "For the first time in my _life_, I'm not getting stared at!" Manny exclaimed, clapping a hand to his face. It stopped about a quarter of an inch from his flesh.

"Oh, you're still being stared at," Gwen told him, raising an eyebrow as she looked back at him. The group was standing in the line near the front desk of a hotel, where they would be staying while Max had the 'new' RV fixed up. "But that's because _your luggage is floating a foot off the ground_."

The disguised half-Tetramand looked down and the luggage in question wobbled from where it was hovering next to his side, held by his now-invisible extra arms. Abruptly, it dropped back to the floor and he scratched the back of his head, laughing slightly in embarrassment.

Gwen sighed and turned back to look up past the last few people between their ragtag group and the bored clerk. She rolled her eyes in aggravation as the man in the front got into a one-sidedly heated argument with the clerk, who continued to look dully at him over his half-moon glasses.

The red-head grimaced and adjusted her crutch, leaning heavily on it. "Are… are you okay?" Charmcaster asked, grabbing her by the elbow. "Do you want to go sit down?"

"Wha…? Oh, no… I'm fine!" She gave the witch a smile but gasped in surprise and pain as she stumbled trying to keep up with the rest of the line.

"_No~_, you need to go sit down," she insisted, trying to pull at Gwen's arm without putting weight onto her leg.

"_Charmcaster_…"

"She's right, you know," Cooper spoke up. "Your balancing act probably isn't the healthiest thing for you to do."

Gwen opened her mouth briefly but closed it quickly and sighed in defeat. "You're right. Both of you. I really should sit, but…" she said, aiming a smile at the two of them. She dug into her pocket and held out a wad of bills to the witch. "Here, the money for the-_HEY_!"

"Like I'm letting _her_ hold onto grandpa's money…" Ben said as he counted through the money he had grabbed from his cousin's hand.

Gwen growled in barely controlled anger, her fingers twitching like they'd like to clamp down on the boy's throat. "_What_ is your _problem_, _dweeb_! ?" she shouted as quietly as she could in the lobby, hobbling towards him.

"My _problem_? _You're_ the one trusting _Charmcaster_!" he retorted, using his free hand to point at the witch while stuffing the money into a pocket.

"_Charmcaster_ has yet to do _anything_ that I can't forgive or empathize with! Face it! You're only on her because of the _Kevin_ thing, _which only happened because you're a terrible judge of character_!"

"'Forgive'! ? She's nearly killed us, like, three times!"

"She's nearly killed _me_! Once! _Because you dodged_!" Gwen shouted, jabbing a finger into Ben's chest.

"_What_! ? How about the ti-!"

"Don't suppose _I_ get a say in this?" Charmcaster interrupted, standing off to the side. She flinched back as Ben turned his attention to her.

"_NO_!" he snarled, shooting her a glare.

"Oh, you are _asking_ for a beating!" Gwen hefted her crutch like a bat and waved it threateningly at him, causing him to jump back in alarm.

"… If you're about finished…?"

"What! ?" they snapped as they swung around to face the speaker. The clerk's eyes narrowed dangerously as he looked down at them over the counter. The cousins quickly shut up, nervously stepping away from and pointedly ignoring the other.

The clerk sighed and kneaded his forehead with his fingers before turning to the eldest of the group. "How may I be of assistance today, sir?" Manny didn't notice and continued salivating at the thought of lunch. "… Sir?"

The group sighed as they realized Manny wasn't going to notice on his own and Charmcaster stepped forward, jabbing him in an invisible arm. He spun around in confusion, blinking the hunger-haze from his eyes.

"How may I help you?" the clerk repeated, carefully enunciating every word and tapping the charter to draw the hybrid's attention.

"Oh! Right, we need, like, two or three rooms next to each other if possible," Manny said, resting a hand or three on the desk while waving a hand at the rest of the group. "I think one of my cohorts has money, but I lost track of who because… ooh, that looks good!" He made an attempt to wander off after someone who had just left the restaurant but face-planted when Charmcaster planted a foot in front of him.

"Fantastic…" the clerk muttered as Ben laid the bills on the desk. "I have two rooms that fit what you asked for, but I'll need to see some ID before I can rent them out to you… Sir? Sir!"

"Hunh? Wha?" Manny said as he spun around from where he was glaring at the witch.

"ID?"

Manny stared at him blankly.

"ID? You know, identification? ID card, driver's license, credit cards…" Cooper said, hitting him with his wallet.

"_ID cards_?" the hybrid scoffed, standing up straight and planting his fists on his hips. "Why would I have an ID card?"

What he said next was unexpected. While they would have expected something along the line of his alien attributes or something from his past, he instead finished with, "I'm only thirteen."

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><p>"I can<em>not<em> believe you're _thirteen_," Ben said, eying the nearly seven-foot-tall pre-teen suspiciously. "Can you believe he's thirteen, grandpa?"

"It's… a little hard to swallow, admittedly," Max said, scratching the back of his neck. "But it makes sense, what with the size of even a ten-year-old _full_ Tetramand…"

The new adult looked down and chuckled. "I'm not even going to try and understand this, Max…" Cooper's father had light brown, almost blonde hair and was naturally muscular. His tan polo shirt and dark dress pants highlighted this fact. "But we'd better get going before your RV is fixed up."

"You're probably right… I want you kids to keep out of trouble, you hear?" Max glanced at the three boys meaningfully. Ben shrugged noncommittally and Cooper nodded obediently while Manny grinned…

"Well, you ready to get-whoa! What? _What_? Whoa!" The man jumped and started dodging around the hotel room the group had moved into as Manny ran after him, cackling madly with the mask held in one of his wildly flailing hands. "_Max! What's going on?_"

"Manny's half-alien, Terry. There's nothing wrong with him."

Terry stared at the pale-red pre-teen dancing around to show off his extra arms. The clothes projected by the ID mask were gone to reveal a Plumber's suit, modified for his alien body. "… Plumbers," he remarked. Max nodded in confirmation. "… I need to think. I'll be waiting in the car."

"Thanks for dropping by, dad!" Cooper called after his father as he left.

"Not a problem, Coop!"

Max chuckled but quickly went quiet as Ben pushed his way past into the hall. "Hey, where're you going, sport?"

"Charmcaster's not in her room! I'm keeping an eye on her so she can't stab us in the back!" he called back as he jogged off, looking down each hallway he passed.

The old man groaned and face-palmed in exasperation at his grandson's stubborn streak. "Ben! Maybe you shou-!" He jumped when a loud pulse of electricity and a crashing sound erupted from the room he had stepped out of. "_MANNY! !_"

"_Sorry_! Sorry, I thought the safety was on… Heh…"

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><p>The vending machine shook as a thick-toed boot slammed into its side. Not thick enough, however, and Charmcaster hopped off, clutching her foot in pain.<p>

Gwen sighed. "Would you just sit?" she said, patting the table before the seat next to her own. She quickly grabbed the cans of soda off of it when her friend sat down heavily and slammed a fist into the aged wood.

"I can't stand your as~~-_idiot_ cousin!" she practically shrieked, pulling at her hair before slamming her head into the table.

Gwen watched her pound her forehead against the wood over and over before reaching out and catching her head before she could do it again. "Soda? I didn't know what you like so I got you a Coke." She waved the can in front of the witch's face.

Charmcaster cracked an eye to give it a look before grabbing it out of the red-head's grasp with a mumbled, "Thank you". She promptly smacked it to her eye and leaning back with a sigh, letting the cold metal eat away at her headache.

Gwen planted her elbow on the table and rested her head on her fist, watching her new friend with a faint smile on her face. The smile faded away as the witch continued muttering darkly about her cousin.

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><p><strong>A lot of this first season will be Ben coming to terms with Charmcaster. The instant-buddies relationship the sequels set up with BenGwen and Kevin is completely _impossible_ and is part of what made the sequels so intolerable. A stubborn, impulsive hero would _never_ become instant 'Best Buddies 4ever!' with a ('previously') _sociopathic, murdering asshole that has repeatedly tried killing him!_ It's going to take a good deal longer for Ben to accept Charmcaster as a... friend, of sorts.**

**A new-old alien will probably make his debut in the next part of this episode. You might be able to predict which one by the title alone.**

**What do you think of Manny so far? He was a little too Kevin for my tastes in Ultimate Alien Force. Also, would a thirteen-year-old have an ID card? I can't remember when I got mine.**


	9. Shock and Awe Part 2

Hey, a new story alerter-er-er-er-er! Hi, Blazen! You can officially say you were the person to get me back on this! Because I am a lazy, lazy man and I got distracted by college and depression brought on by college (and other things).

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><p>Chapter 8 – Shock and Awe (Part 2)<p>

"I'm sorry."

An eye popped open. "Eh?" Charmcaster said, peering at her from under the can.

"I'm sorry how Ben's been treating you," Gwen clarified, sighing. "He's being absolutely terrible to you!"

The witch hesitated as she regarded the red-head next to her. "I… Well, it's not like I didn't do anything to… to not warrant that sort of treatment, all things considered," she replied, waving a hand as if in dismissal and popping the tab on the soda. "Still obnoxious, though…" she added before chugging the drink.

"But you're not that person anymore! And you were forced into a corner by Hex!"

"It doesn't change the fact that I did it and repeatedly targeted you even when I wasn't under Uncle's heel…" Charmcaster sighed, leaning back and studying the reflections on the now-empty Coke can. Abruptly, she hurled it across the room into a trash can and turned to address Gwen. "And what about you?"

The sudden question took her by surprise and she had to take a moment to recover her wits. "I…! Uh, what do you mean?"

"I mean… why are you trusting me unconditionally like this, after all I've done? After I blatantly stabbed you in the back that first time?"

Gwen hesitated, thinking back to the past few days as Charmcaster looked on worriedly. "… Because… I do!" she said simply, returning the witch's look of astonishment with a rueful grin. "I've just got a good feeling about this."

Charmcaster stared at her and seconds turned to minutes, leading the red-head to ever rising levels of embarrassment. "W-well, I mean it's, um, I dunno-"

Gwen looked up from her feet just in time to utter a squeak of alarm as the witch clapped a hand over her mouth. "Did you hear that?" Charmcaster hissed, keeping a tight grip on the red-head's jaw. They were silent, listening intently to the suddenly oppressive lack of noise until…

"Gunfire…" the red-head mumbled, muffled further by the witch's hand.

"Yeah… We need to find somewhere to hide while-" Charmcaster cut herself off, yanking her hand away as something wet stabbed at it. "Eeeew!"

Gwen stuck her tongue out at her from her newly liberated mouth.

"Great… just great…" Ben muttered, his hands up by his head. "I go looking for Charmcaster and I wind up finding these jerks…"

Before him stood a cluster of upwards of two dozen men in masks and figure-hiding clothing. Most had some manner of fire arm and all had a melee weapon strapped to their backs. The man in front, in a mask that was closer to a fox-shaped helmet, lowered his still-steaming semi-automatic. With a wave of his free hand, a small contingent of his men stepped forward and proffered burlap sacks towards the huddle of employees and guests.

"Relinquish your valuables and your lives will be spared," the fox-masked leader said, the jaw of his mask jerking up and down to match his words. "Don't and, well… I'm sure I don't need to explain what will happen to you…" He started laughing and was shortly followed by the rest of his group.

They laughed for a long time and got more surreal by the second. It got to the point that, after the first couple of minutes had passed, a few of the victims had started chuckling nervously.

All the while the men with the bags went from person to person, relieving them of anything they found pleasing: watches, purses, luggage, a ham sandwich that its owner briefly considered starting a fight over… They also laughed. Constantly. Which suited Ben just fine, as they were distracted enough to not notice him as he avoided their attention.

After all, the Omnitrix was no ordinary watch. He couldn't risk them taking a shine to it.

A hand shot up and it was like a switch was thrown; the laughter immediately ceased*. With a quick series of movements followed by the leader nodding towards the stairs on either side of the lobby, half of his men scurried off to gather the rest of building's occupants.

"Get a move on, 'comrade'!" one gunman said nastily, waving his weapon in the direction of the tall not-actually-Russian Manny. His fellow chuckled, repeating the words in a thick accent that suggested terminal stupidity.

"Yeah, yeah, you don't have to tell me twice…" the disguised half-alien said, annoyed at hearing the same racial slur for the second time in as many minutes.

"Hurry it up, 'comrade', don't you want the baklovovo we got you?" the first man added as they neared the top of the stairs.

"Yeah, baklanakalov!"

Manny rolled his eyes at another of the slurs he'd already been subjected to prior and decided to just hurl himself down the stairs, tumbling awkwardly until he came to rest against the wall at the bottom.

"Hey, stupid!" the first yelled as the gruesome twosome ran down to try and threaten the man back to his feet. "What are you, stupid? Ge'cho clumsy ass up and down the-" He and his compatriot was waving their guns in Manny's face. They weren't waving them for very long as twin invisible forces ripped them from their hands. They lurched back, stupefied beyond words, but didn't get very far.

Manny pulled them close, a hand on either shoulder and said, "Hey guys? Two things. One, it's called a 'baklava' and, two?" He crushed their guns with his invisible hands, causing their beady eyes to widen in horrified realization. "It's from Turkey." He cracked their skulls together, quickly introducing them to unconsciousness.

"Great. Just great." Ben and the rest of the people in the hotel* had been herded into the quickly emptied hotel's vault and locked inside, where he could be found leaning up against a pile of drawers.

Around him, the others were in varying states of panic and fear, some even going so far as to start weeping. Ben let out a groan, his head banging against the shelves. 'I can't do anything without outing myself!' he noted in exasperation.

He lurched forwards with a subdued shout of alarm as someone grabbed his arm. He was quickly shoved down and out of sight of the rest of the people, Cooper quickly shushing him when he tried to protest.

"I've tried to get the doors open, but there isn't enough digital equipment in the locks for me to manipulate!" the technopath hissed.

"And I can't transform unless it's life or death!"

The two were silent for a time. "I... I think it might be, Ben..." Cooper started, glancing back at the door.

"What-"

"I think the vault's airtight... or close enough, anyway. If we don't open it soon..." Cooper left the sentence hanging. There wasn't any reason to complete it.

"I... don't think I thought this through enough," Manny said, crouched behind one of the pillars in the lobby.

"You think!?" shouted one of the two criminals he had grabbed before having to take refuge from the bullets pounding the masonry to dust behind him.

"Oh, shut up, you..." An open-handed slap rendered the man unconscious like his fellow criminal, leaving the half-Tetramand to think. Beside the occasional spurt of gunfire, it was silent for a time. He sighed. "I got nothin'..."

The less-recently concussed criminal shifted with a groan as he started to return to consciousness. He fully returned to consciousness five feet in the air and hurtling across the room, only to be immediately rendered unconscious again when he slammed into a wall. His partner, at the very least, remained under for the entirety of his Manny-propelled flight out of the hotel's doors.

Distracted by their fellows being hurled out from behind the pillar in opposite directions, the rest of the group didn't have the time to react to the pillar being ripped from its foundation and carried towards them at high speeds. Many suffered cracked ribs as Manny bludgeoned them with the masonry and all but a few remained conscious by avoiding the charge.

They immediately learned that the pillar would have been preferable. At least it was immediate, while a four-armed flurry of fists wasn't nearly as efficient.

Ben and Cooper leapt up as the doors to the vault shuddered, while the rest of the prisoners screamed and tried to push farther back into the vault. It was silent for a time before another loud barrage of knocks shook the door. Again, it went silent.

By the time the muffled swearing from the other side started to become apparent, even some of the most fearful of the prisoners started to hesitantly chuckle. The laughter died a swift death as a tumbler slowly began to turn. Lock after lock opened and, as the final lock fell to the unknown force on the other side of the door, Ben reached for the Omnitrix and popped the dial up in preparation.

The doors opened, allowing Manny to peer into the vault and give a two-handed wave to its occupants. He grinned. And, at that moment, all hell broke loose among them.

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><p>* - Barring the two girls and Manny.<p> 


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